Cleaning Toilets, and Other Great Chores for Boys

 

Tonight as Kuba was falling asleep he opened his eyes and said to me, "I forgot to clean the toilet! Oh, I'll do it tomorrow. And I'll wash the kitchen floor too. I washed it today but it got all dirty."
He is on a chore binge. Today (because he wanted to) he pulled 8 chore cards from the chore bowl and happily did them...all except the toilet. They both love cleaning the toilet.  I think because I am an enthusiastic teacher of chores, I might have overdone it with the toilet cleaning delight.  What kills me about his comment tonight is his sincerity and his desire to really and truly clean the toilet. 

We've always been challenged, Anna and I, about how to get our boys to help out more around the house.  How to give them responsibilities and also keep it interesting to them.  Anna thought of this daily chore idea and it's been working for a long time.  We've adapted it a few times, but pretty consistently this works.  We've created a list of about 20 chores that are easy to do without help after the initial training.  The kids choose one a day and then complete the chore by the end of the day.  Sometimes it's as simple as watering the plants.  Sometimes it's as complicated as cleaning the toilet.  Sometimes it really helps our house run.  Other times it's more about creating a habit.  All the time it makes us happy. 

The surprising part about it has been how the kids have responded to it.  They love certain chores...and whoop when they get their favorites.  Cleaning the toilets is a favorite. Taking out the compost is not a favorite.  Both boys hate that one.  I don't know why, as it seems a heck of a lot easier to me than cleaning a toilet.   Either way, happy or not, they do their chore and we move right along trying to keep up with our messes.  Sometimes better than others.